Jason Schwartzman

Average customer rating:

Trust Hollywood to cast Kirsten as a historical figure... next choice would be Angelina with a blonde hair job, huh?
Different, beautiful, a visual masterpiece that to watch is like dreaming in REM sleep.
Utterly delicious, scrumptious and one of a kind fantastic...
Stylized Presentation Suits the Queen's Youth, but Falls Short as She Ages.
Visually stunning, but yes, the movie has its flaws

Marie Antoinette
Starring: Kirsten Dunst , Marianne Faithfull , Steve Coogan , Clara Brajman , and Mélodie Berenfeld
Director: Sofia Coppola
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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The Departed (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Babel
The Prestige
The Illusionist (Widescreen Edition)
Casino Royale (2-Disc Widescreen Edition) [Region 99]

ASIN: B000M06KJ8
Release Date: 2007-02-13

Amazon.com

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While much was made of the fact that Marie Antoinette elicited boos at Cannes, the many favorable reviews attracted less attention. Inspired by Antonia Fraser's biography, Sofia Coppola fashions a portrait that's just as dreamy as The Virgin Suicides, her first literary adaptation, and the Oscar-winning Lost in Translation. Set to a soundtrack of post-punk (a conceit that adds more interest than resonance), the teenaged Marie (Kirsten Dunst, quite good) may be shallow, but she's rarely unsympathetic. The story begins in the late-18th century as the Austrian Archduchess agrees to marry Louis-Auguste (Jason Schwartzman). After bidding adieu to her mother, Maria Theresa (Marianne Faithfull), she travels to France, where King Louis XV (Rip Torn) sets the rules--and the list is endless (Judy Davis' Comtesse de Noailles is the primary enforcer). As for the Dauphin, he's just a boy, really, with more interest in his key collection than their marriage bed. Should Marie produce an heir, it might be enough to sustain her--since life is nothing but an endless shopping spree--but clouds gather on the horizon as an impoverished populace rises up against their extravagant leaders. Coppola merely suggests what happens next, although history paints a darker picture. Filmed in and around the Chateau of Versailles, Marie Antoinette is a riot of rustling gowns, sparkling jewels, and Manolo Blahnik-designed shoes. To say that style trumps substance does its maker a disservice, but the look of the thing does leave the deepest impression. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Extras from Marie Antoinette (click for larger image) <table border="0" cellpadding="4" width="100%" cellspacing="4">

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Featurette: On the filming of Marie Antoinette:
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Film Clip: "The Introduction"
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 Film Clip: "The Royal Treatment"
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</td> </tr> </table> Stills from Marie Antoinette (click for larger image) <table border="0" cellpadding="4" width="100%" cellspacing="4">

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Beyond Marie Antoinette at Amazon.com <table border="0" cellpadding="4" width="100%" cellspacing="4">

<td><img border="0"src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0307277747.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg">
The Book, Marie Antoinette: The Journey</td>

<td> <img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000ALM4C6.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg" border="0">
More Period Pieces With A Twist</td>

<td><img src="http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00005JMQW.01.TZZZZZZZ.jpg" border="0">
The Films of Kirsten Dunst</td> </tr>

</table>

Product Description

Academy Award® winner Sofia Coppola directs an electrifying yet intimate re-telling of the turbulent life of history's favorite villainess, Marie Antoinette. Kirsten Dunst portrays the ill-fated child princess who married France's young and indifferent King Louis XVI Jason Schwartzman. Feeling isolated in a royal court rife with scandal and intrigue, Marie Antoinette defied both royalty and commoner by living like a rock star, which served only to seal her fate.

Customer Reviews:

Trust Hollywood to cast Kirsten as a historical figure... next choice would be Angelina with a blonde hair job, huh?.......2007-06-24

Kirsten Dunst usually takes part in mundane films with bland performances played by her and other cast members. Not so with her role as Marie Antoinette. Still, I'm not much of a fan of well-known Hollywood actresses being cast for real life event movies because they tend to make it lame.
The movie starts off excruciatingly slow. In fact, it's so boring at first you wonder to yourself whether it will ever pick up and become a proper storyline. Never fear; it does.
Scenery that could blind you with its' beauty, a palace with all the best furniture and crystal chandeliers, lavish delicacies of French pastries and cakes line the tables, and little Marie in amongst it all, feeling overwhelmed and belittled by the French's customs, especially when it comes to being dressed with a crowd of people watching inside her bedroom.
The film is funny in lots of parts, and there are no soppy romances here surprisingly. In fact, Marie might need to pick up the book 'He's Just Not That Into You' and read it, because her husband clearly isn't interested in kissing or making love to her other than to produce an aire to the throne.
Louie is played by John Schwartzman who also starred in 'Shopgirl', he's quite a talented actor, even when he plays awkward AND shy males, unlike Jeremy in 'Shopgirl' who seems awkward, but not terribly shy.
The soundtrack is amazing, filled with lots of background tunes to make even the most dull of moments seem like a journey through a nightclub.
Problems arise near the end of the movie, the full story of Marie Antoinette's life isn't told. They cut it off short. Oh jeez, another unintended pun. I'm so awful, I had these bad puns runnning through my head during the movie like, "Don't lose your head" when Marie was getting all worked up about something minor. (For those who don't realise: "Don't lose your head" is another way of saying "Don't panic", and Marie in the end is executed by a guillotined head). Only you don't see this. You don't see that she is executed. Those who know nothing about the story would just think she went on to live a troubled but carefree life with her husband. Not so.
Out of 10, I give this movie 7. 7 because they could have got rid of many unnecessary scenes and limited the cookery which does nothing for the audience except giving them a look nearly every 5 seconds at grand and overindulgent food like you would in a recipe magazine. Every ten seconds these people seem to be eating; is this a life story or a report on diet habits?, in which case a doctor would shake his head and tell them to cut down on sugar.

Different, beautiful, a visual masterpiece that to watch is like dreaming in REM sleep........2007-06-21

I've read many if the negative reviews of this film and it appears they are based on an unfortunate American standard of bio flicks or period pieces.
Since when do American audiences demand historical accuracy in motion pictures? This is film is not trying to replace some college level special studies course in French History, it is Sophia Coppola's "vision" of the story upon which it is based.
Sophia Coppola has inherited her father's mastery of the visual and her mother's keen documentary storytelling sensibilities.
This film won't do the thinking for you. So, if you miss the storyline, perhaps Borat is more your style.
Coppola had to make some concessions to accuracy, (like the use of clearly American actors to play 18th century French nobility) but this does not detract enough from the film to make it anything less than good.
Cinematographically, the film is a masterpiece, each scene could win an award in visual appeal alone.
Copploa's use of modern music is bold. I've always felt the harpsichord produces musical vomit, so hearing Siouxsie and the Banshees in its place is a welcomed alternative.
This movie is a success if only one viewer is inspired to find out more about the title character, her life, times or any other part of French or World history.

Utterly delicious, scrumptious and one of a kind fantastic..........2007-06-21

Sophia Coppola's third film `Marie Antoinette' just may be her finest cinematic accomplishment. It's enriched with life, character and charm and it still manages to layer itself with the subtle illusion of grief and misery that surrounded this tragic story. Sophia, along with a brilliant cast, was able to take a story plucked fresh from the history books and make it relatable and entertaining, refreshing amidst the modern era of the biopic. Coppola's film here mainly focuses on the woman that was Marie Antoinette and through Kirsten Dunst's brilliant performance the audience is brought to the soul of this woman and the soul of her conflict. She as young, she was naïve but most of all she was lost in a world far above her head, one trust upon her, one that embraced her and then turned on her when they needed a scapegoat.

Dunst is riveting in the title role, and the film is really a showcase for her talent. The film starts off with Marie just a young teenager who is promised in marriage to Louis-Auguste, played by Jason Schwartzman, in order to unite the countries of France and Austria, and it carries on till just shy of her execution. Dunst is magically able to manipulate her character so effortlessly that the audience is baffled at Marie's subtle and gradual growth as a young Queen. Schwartzman does a wonderful job playing the young husband, a man too young for the responsibility on his shoulders and too uninterested for the wife he's been given despite her beauty and magnetism. One could say he's overwhelmed, maybe even a bit frightened.

Sophia Coppola brilliantly scripted this masterpiece; everything from the dialog to the musical soundtrack is inventive, effective and refreshing. The script is especially noteworthy, giving the royal courts a modern twist that resembles the tabloid covers that litter the concession stands each week. Having long sequences of murmured gossip, whispered rumors and lust centered jealousy help make for a memorable and relatable experience. The costume designs and set pieces are magical and add so many lavish layers to the already layered biopic. The scenes blossoming forth with colorful fabrics, high fashion inspired shoes and pastries add visual depth to the reality that this Queen was just like every other young girl and helps make her more real to us.

Marie Antoinette's devotion to her newfound country is stifled by her husband's refusal to consummate their marriage and her dire frustration in her inability to provide an heir that would unite her birthland with her homeland transcends right to the audience. Marie Antoinette was a tragically misunderstood woman who did all that she could in a situation she had no control over.

The supporting cast does a fine job as well, Judy Davis and Rip Torn sinking their teeth into their small roles, and Asia Argento is fantastically catty as the Kings mistress, but it's Rose Byrne that really stands out to me. Her brazen obnoxious almost impish sexuality writhes off the screen and into the seat next to you and makes a very long lasting impression. Danny Huston and Marianne Faithfull are brilliant if not sorely underused, but like I've stated, this movie is all about Marie Antoinette and its focus from her never wavers. She's in just about every frame and as we watch her move from naïve young girl to loving mother and wife to confused, hated and betrayed Queen we are moved for her, to her and with her in this brilliantly paced and expertly crafted masterpiece.

Stylized Presentation Suits the Queen's Youth, but Falls Short as She Ages........2007-06-18

Director Sofia Coppola continues her focus on emotionally frustrated young women in her third feature film, "Marie Antoinette", adapted from Antonia Fraser's popular biography of the last Queen of France who met her end at the guillotine. This film will do nothing to resolve the debate over the director's talent or lack thereof, since Ms. Coppola has chosen to make a stylized, candied presentation of already controversial characters in a politically complex 18th century context that the French take pretty seriously. Its purpose is partly to rehabilitate Marie Antoinette's image in the eyes of Americans, who tend to regard her as a wastrel with contempt for the common people. Having studied this period of history while in France, I can say that the French view Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette as the least to blame for France's economic crisis and Revolution.

In 1768, to cement an alliance between Austria and France, the Empress Maria Theresa betroths her youngest daughter to the French Dauphin. The 14-year-old, trepidatious Archduchess (Kirsten Dunst) marries the shy prince (Jason Schwartzman), only slightly older than herself, and becomes Marie Antoinette, Dauphine of France. In addition to the loss of privacy and oppressive protocols of the French court, the young Dauphine is expected to produce an heir. Yet her husband, though kind and respectful, won't have sex with her. In 1774, King Louis XV dies and his son ascends the throne as Louis XVI, making Marie Antoinette Queen of France. Years of pressure to consummate her marriage finally end with the birth of a daughter. But France has huge debts, bread shortages, and revolutionaries do all they can to paint the King and Queen as villains.

"Marie Antoinette" is self-consciously eye candy. It's a baroque visual feast of crisp, vivid pastels. There is little dialogue. Marie Antoinette's life at Versailles is expressed visually through a dynamic camera that seems to float, sumptuous production design, and countless scenes of the Queen and courtiers doing nothing of importance. It's not about matters of state. This is a kind of prolonged vignette illustrating the humiliation, confinement, and extraordinary luxuries that defined Marie Antoinette's lifestyle, and how this effusive, affectionate woman coped with it all, successfully or not. The sets, costumes, and hair styles are stylizations, not intended to be entirely accurate but to convey the kid-in-a-candy-store indulgence with which Marie Antoinette consoled herself in the years before she had children.

This all works well until Marie Antoinette becomes a mother at age 23. As she aged, the Queen mostly abandoned her spendthrift ways and tried to sacrifice for France to the extent that a person so isolated could. The film tries awkwardly to express this and ends up being rather muddled. Two of her children died. The tone of Marie Antoinette's life changed. The tone of the film doesn't. The inclusion of her alleged affair with Count Ferson seems incongruous. The result is that the film's second half is unclear and ineffectual. Where a broad emotional portrait of her life at Versailles allows unique insight into Marie Antoinette's youth, her later life cannot be understood without more structured and intricate storytelling.

Liberties taken with details and design aside, I expect French viewers will dislike "Marie Antoinette" on the basis of language alone. The French language reached its height in the late 18th century, and the ability to speak cleverly and beautifully was highly prized at Court. But words in this film are simple and sparse. It has been definitely established that dialogue is not Sofia Coppola's forte. But her intention here is to shift focus away from manners and onto emotions, which may be appropriate. I think "Marie Antoinette" succeeds as a fresh, innovative way to understand this ill-fated Queen's emotional life up to a point. But the MTV-inspired style is less suitable as Marie Antoinette ages and she exchanges old pressures for new. 3 ½ stars.

The DVD (Sony 2007): There are 2 deleted scenes, a theatrical trailer (2 ½ min), a theatrical teaser (1 ½ min), and 2 featurettes. "The Making of Marie Antoinette" (25 min) features on-set interviews with the cast, behind-the-scenes footage, discussions of the film's themes with Sofia Coppola, and interviews with the film's creative team about production and costume design, colors, lighting, and more. In "Cribs with Louis XVI" (3 ½ min) Jason Schwartzman takes us on a tour of his palace at Versailles in the style of MTV's "Cribs". Subtitles are available for the film in English and French. Dubbing available in French.

Visually stunning, but yes, the movie has its flaws.......2007-06-18

I read Antonia Fraser's biography because I wanted to read the book that had inspired the movie. The beauty and opulence of Versailles is captured on film for all to see (with actor Jason Schwartzman giving us an MTVish tour of Louis XVI's "crib" in the special features). The interior design and costume crew deserve Oscar considerations as does Kirsten Dunst's "pitch perfect" (Roger Ebert) performance.

I'm glad that at long last Marie Antoinette can be acquitted of two centuries of slander and libel. She at long last receives her "day in court" through Sofia Coppola's movie and Antonia Fraser's book, though I feel the book does a better job of portraying Marie Antoinette sympathetically. The point of Fraser's book wasn't that Marie Antoinette "defied both royalty and commoner by living like a rock star, which served only to seal her fate" (the movie's description of the "isolated" queen). At least, I don't think that that was the point of the biography. Yes, Marie Antoinette partied hard and lived it up for awhile, but that died down when she became a mother. The whole movie seems to focus on this stage of Marie Antoinette's life, as though she remained in this constant phase of party girl and extravagance until her arrest. The book helps us to decipher fact from fiction about this enigmatic woman. And this irresponsible party mode is more myth than reality in terms of describing the bulk of Marie Antoinette's adult life, especially after motherhood.

The anachronistic music didn't bother me--I understand Sofia Coppola's desire to make history seem modern and relevant. The music really helps us see Marie Antoinette as a teenager, with an 18th-century teen angst twist that would make John Hughes proud.

You never really get a sense of the passage of time in this movie. Perhaps this was Sofia Coppola's intent as she wanted this to be an "impressionistic rendering" of life according to Marie Antoinette. Kirsten Dunst looks as young as she did when she first entered the court of Versaille at fifteen as she does when she leaves it in her mid-thirties.

I think that if the Affair of the Necklace had been included in this movie, it would have added to the dialogue--which has been accused of being stagnant. Plus, that incident is just so interesting, and this "labyrinth" (as Marie Antoinette called the affair) would have shown yet another misrepresented incident that had the effect of the queen losing even more ground with the public.

The guy who plays Marie Antoinette's extramarital love interest is quite the hottie, and his character (the Swedish Count Fersen) is the only person whom Antonia Fraser believes actually had an affair with the queen (or at least the only affair that is somewhat substantiated and not mere rumor).

All in all, this movie is visually breathtaking and does allow us to see what life must have been like for Marie Antoinette when she first arrives at Versailles. It's hard to imagine forcing a young girl of fourteen or fifteen to leave everything she knows in order to travel to a foreign country and marry a teenage boy she has never met, all while living in a fishbowl.

Average customer rating:

Get Them In Your Crosshairs And Take Them Down...
One of the most original and entertaining comedies of the '90s...
You either love it or hate it.
Not really my cup of tea....*Spoilers*
Great flick for nerds

Rushmore
Starring: Jason Schwartzman , Bill Murray , Olivia Williams , Seymour Cassel , and Brian Cox
Director: Wes Anderson
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

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The Royal Tenenbaums (The Criterion Collection)
Bottle Rocket
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - Criterion Collection (2-Disc Special Edition)
I Heart Huckabees
Lost in Translation

ASIN: 6305428239
Release Date: 1999-06-29

Amazon.com essential video

Wes Anderson's follow-up to the quirky Bottle Rocket is a wonderfully unorthodox coming-of-age story that ranks with Harold and Maude and The Graduate in the pantheon of timeless cult classics. Jason Schwartzman (son of Talia Shire and nephew of Francis Coppola) stars as Max Fischer, a 15-year-old attending the prestigious Rushmore Academy on scholarship, where he's failing all of his classes but is the superstar of the school's extracurricular activities (head of the drama club, the beekeeper club, the fencing club...). Possessing boundless confidence and chutzpah, as well as an aura of authority he seems to have been born with, Max finds two unlikely soulmates in his permutations at Rushmore: industrial magnate and Rushmore alumnus Herman Blume (Bill Murray) and first-grade teacher Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams). His alliance with Blume and crush on Miss Cross, however, are thrown out of kilter by his expulsion from Rushmore, and a budding romance between the two adults that threatens Max's own designs on the lovely schoolteacher.

Never stooping to sentimentality or schmaltz, Anderson and cowriter Owen Wilson have fashioned a wickedly intelligent and wildly funny tale of young adulthood that hits all the right notes in its mix of melancholy and optimism. As played by Schwartzman, Max is both immediately endearing and ferociously irritating: smarter than all the adults around him, with little sense of his shortcomings, he's an unstoppable dynamo who commands grudging respect despite his outlandish projects (including a school play about Vietnam). Murray, as the tycoon who determinedly wages war with Max for the affections of Miss Cross, is a revelation of middle-aged resignation. Disgusted with his family, his life, and himself, he's turned around by both Max's antagonism and Miss Cross's love. Williams is equally affecting as the teacher who still carries a torch for her dead husband, and the superb supporting cast also includes Seymour Cassel as Max's barber father, Brian Cox as the frustrated headmaster of Rushmore, and a hilarious Mason Gamble as Max's young charge. Put this one on your shelf of modern masterpieces. --Mark Englehart

Description

RUSHMORE is the story of a gifted, rebellious teenager named Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman), a 10th grader at elite Rushmore Academy. Editor of the school newspaper, captain or president of innumerable clubs and societies, Max is also one of the worst students in the school, and the threat of expulsion hangs permanently over his head. Max's world is rocked when he falls for elegant 1st grade teacher Miss Cross (Olivia Williams) and he plans to erect an aquarium in her honor -- then finds himself competing for her affections with his friend, steel tycoon Mr. Blume (Bill Murray), the wealthy father of two of his classmates.

Customer Reviews:

Get Them In Your Crosshairs And Take Them Down..........2007-06-24

This is probably my favorite movie of all time.
The story concerns one Max Fischer, 15 years old, student at the illustrious Rushmore Academy. But Max is not your average student- he's one of the worst.
Max (Schwartzman) befriends wealthy industrialist Herman Bloom (Murray), and falls in love with Rushmore's newest teacher, Rosemary, a widow from England, and unleashes some truly machiavellian schemes to get her to fall in love with him, (including trying to build an unauthorized aquarium for her on school grounds, backed by Mr. Bloom's millions), getting himself expelled in the process. Meanwhile, the married Herman also falls in love with her and they begin to have an affair, which sets off one of the funniest sequences in American film history; watching a 50 year-old man being attacked by bees that have mysteriously invaded his hotel room and intentionally running over a 15 year old boy's bicycle always makes me smile.
In the end, Max learns alot about life and love and friendship and all of that, and makes peace with Mr. Bloom, Rosemary, the memory of his deceased mother and the end of his tenure at Rushmore Academy. While watching, ask yourself why Max does what he does, why he never wants to leave Rushmore- his reason, never stated, is among the most touching aspects of a character that I have ever seen in any movie.
The soundtrack is truly amazing, as with all of the Wes Anderson films; check out The Who singing "A Quick One While He's Away."
The best thing I can say about this movie is that most people will see a bit of themselves and the people they know in the characters. Truly a wonderful film.

One of the most original and entertaining comedies of the '90s..........2007-05-23

Since making his directing debut with the 1996 cult caper film "Bottle Rocket," Wes Anderson has established himself as one of film's most exciting young directors. His second film, "Rushmore," is a witty, heartfelt and often amusing film that features a hilarious performance by Bill Murray.

Anderson wrote the quirky script with his right-hand man, actor Owen Wilson, with whom he also collaborated on "Bottle Rocket" and "The Royal Tenenbaums." The story follows the trials and travails of high school student Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman), a sharp kid who focuses his attention on a plethora of offbeat extracurricular pursuits (fencing club, Latin, playwriting) rather than his studies.

In between attending to his various activities at Rushmore (the name of the private school he attends), Max develops a crush on Miss Cross (Olivia Williams), an elementary school teacher at his school. He also befriends Herman Blume (Bill Murray), an eccentric millionaire whose two sons attend school with Max.

Things soon fall apart for Max: The school expels him, Miss Cross denies his flirtations, and Blume begins courting Miss Cross himself. That sets up an extremely funny tete-a-tete between Max and Blume, highlighted by the scene in which Blume runs over Max's bike with his car.

As the intriguing love triangle of Max, Blume and Miss Cross plays out, Max finds solace in his caring father and a female student at his new school. The ending, which features all the characters coming together to watch Max's newest play, is entirely satisfying without being hokey or cynical.

Schwartzman, the nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola ("The Godfather"), exhibits a great knack for comedy throughout "Rushmore." But Murray steals the show with a masterfully funny turn that scored him a Golden Globe Nomination and Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor. In one unforgettable scene, Herman suggests that his sons invite Max to their birthday party. "There's gonna be girls there," replies one. "Yeah," adds the other, "Get your head out of your a--." Murray's initial deadpan reaction will have you howling; his subsequent reach into the back seat to pummel his son will have you rolling on the floor.

Anderson, who captured the Independent Spirit Award for Best Director, exhibits a sense of craft that's rare for comedic directors. Rather than depend solely on physical gags or even amusing one-liners, Anderson uses set direction, art direction and music to enhance his vision. Even if your sense of humor doesn't jive with Anderson's, you'll walk away from "Rushmore" with an appreciation for his careful attention to detail.

You either love it or hate it........2007-05-12

You have to love the little moments because this movie is made of little moments. I watched this before I knew it was a comedy and when I found out it was I figured they just couldn't think of anywhere else to put it. This movie makes me feel like there are lots of things moving and changing that have nothing to do with me. A lot of people say they don't like the movie because they think Max is a prick. You're supposed to feel that way, I think. You're supposed to forgive him for that because he's got something special in him, or at least that in his case he knows about it. But it also seems like some people don't like the movie because it's different. I guess that if you're patient and you like the little things, you'll enjoy this movie. Also, if you feel like you're left out or sort of an outcast you might enjoy this movie. You know, the kind of person that doesn't have red or hammer as the first thing they think of when you ask them for a tool and a color.

Not really my cup of tea....*Spoilers*.......2007-03-20

2.5 stars. I'm not really sure how I feel about this movie. I truely didn't contect to Max. I, too, found him to be a pompous spoiled brat and often times bordered on the creepy side in his pursuit of Mrs. Cross. And I'm not sure where his air of entitlement came from. For a boy with such humble orgins, his character seems totally out of whack. Bill Murray surely has his middle-aged blues shtick down (Lost in translation/Broken Flowers). he, too, was not a character I could root for. I understand he was not happy with the direction of his life, but the whole affair thing just seems so typical...and I'm not sure if he and Mrs. Cross were going to pick up things where they left off or not. Max never does pick up his grades or cut back on the extracurriculum activies--so I'm not sure about his character arch. He's pretty much the same boy at the end of the film as he was in the begining. Oh, except, he does admit his father is a barber now. Overall, check it out at your own peril.

Great flick for nerds.......2007-03-11

OK...my title is a little mean, but I found this kid, whom we're supposed to "just love" a little mean and the fact that I lost sympathy for him early on (due to his meanness) kept me from rooting for him. This is defintely a film in which we are supposed to root for the hero (or the anti-hero)...the adorable short nerdy kid with a big nose and glasses. His mother died of cancer, his father is a poor-but-good hearted barber,
he got into this fancy prep school on a scholarship, he is so smart that he solved a math problem that stumped MIT profs in a matter of minutes, etc. And the school bully picks on him.

Well he isn't really that nice, himself. He's insufferably rude to the Chinese girl, destroys Blume's marriage without a second thought, disables Blume's car which could have killed him. But he's still "adorable nerdy Max" so we're supposed to overlook these quirks and love him. I found his egotism much more annoying than cute.

I suspect that guys who felt like nerds in middle school might like this film due to some sort of wish fulfillment but beware, he doesn't end up with the pretty school teacher in the end! Maybe if another, more naturally likable actor had starred I'd have more interest in him..(Leonardo DiCaprio captured our sympathy as a young kid, in spite of committing huge crimes in Catch Me if You Can and I think that a lot of that was due to DiCaprio's natural sweetness) Jason Shwartzman (whom I actually liked a lot in Marie Antoinette) just didn't grab my heart the way the script obviously intended. Only once, when he smiled in the end did he seem a little sympathetic. For most of the film he sails through his antics with a vague superior smirk on an opaque, masklike face. There's no light there except an evil glint in his eyes when he's seeking revenge.

He looks like a cross between Woody Allan and Groucho Marx (were those his real eyebrows?.) Maybe if you find those guys endearing, you'll love Max. Otherwise... well, I warned you.

On the plus side, Bill Murray was genuinely touching and funny and many of the supporting cast were very good. I liked the music too.

Average customer rating:

genius
Wonderful Movie
thought-provoking and intelligent......in a class by itself.....
I heart huckabees
The best movie in the world

I Heart Huckabees
Starring: Jason Schwartzman , Isabelle Huppert , Dustin Hoffman , Lily Tomlin , and Jude Law
Director: David O. Russell
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Royal Tenenbaums (The Criterion Collection)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - Criterion Collection (2-Disc Special Edition)
Rushmore
Bottle Rocket
Garden State

ASIN: B0006TPE4C
Release Date: 2005-02-22

Product Description

Dustin Hoffman and Lily Tomlin lead an all-star cast including Jude Law, Naomi Watts and Mark Walhberg in this outrageous comedy from director/co-writer David O. Russell (Three Kings). Kindhearted but confused activist Andrew Markovski hires a pair of screwball "existential detectives" (Hoffman and Tomlin) to help him find the meaning of life. All the while, a sexy, French author (Isabelle Huppert) is trying to throw a wrench in their plan by seducing andrew's mind and body.

System Requirements:

Running Time 107 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

Billed as "an existential comedy," I Heart Huckabees is a flawed yet endearingly audacious screwball romp that dares to ponder life's biggest questions. Much of director David O. Russell's philosophical humor is dense, talky, and impenetrable, leading critic Roger Ebert to observe that "it leaves the viewer out of the loop," and suggesting that Russell's screenplay (written with his assistant, Jeff Baena) is admirably bold yet frustratingly undisciplined. Russell's ideas are big but his expression of them is frenetic, centering on the unlikely pairing of an environmentalist (Jason Schwartzman) and a firefighter (Mark Wahlberg) as they depend on existential detectives (Lily Tomlin, Dustin Hoffman) and a French nihilist (Isabelle Huppert) to make sense of their existential crises, brought on (respectively) by a two-faced chain-store executive (Jude Law) and his spokesmodel girlfriend (Naomi Watts), and the aftermath of 9/11's terrorism. No brief description can do justice to Russell's comedic conceit; you'll either be annoyed and mystified or elated and delighted by this wacky primer for coping with 21st century lunacy. Deserving of its mixed reviews, I Heart Huckabees is an audacious mess, like life itself, and accepting that is the key to enjoying both. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

genius.......2007-05-17

I love this movie, every time I watch it I see something new. I know that is a very obvious thing to say but it is true of this movie. If you didn't like it the first time, give it at least two wacthes~
enjoy enjoy

Wonderful Movie.......2007-03-28

This movie is not for everyone but it is in my top 3 movies of all time. Check out the dinner scene when jason schwartzman finally gets to sit down with the tall african man. One of the best scenes in any movie to date. Wes Anderson fans will love this movie.

thought-provoking and intelligent......in a class by itself............2007-03-26

I HEART HUCKABEES takes a look at the existential meltdown of Albert Markovski (Jason Schwartzman), an employee at Huckabees (the equivalent of the WalMart chain of stores), who also works to promote the planting of trees in public spaces, while writing irate poetry in a notebook and trying to figure out his raison d'etre in the world. Enter Bernard (Dustin Hoffman) and Vivian (Lily Tomlin), a team of existential detectives, who also happen to be married to each other. They are determined to take on Albert's case, pro bono, and find out the root cause(s) of his anxiety and what blocks him from becoming truly free of what shackles him to his turbulent past. Through taking on this pro bono case, Bernard and Vivian also have encounters with Albert's colleagues at Huckabees, who are struggling with identity crises of their own--co-workers Brad (Jude Law) and Dawn (Naomi Watts).

I really don't know how to best describe this film. If you are looking to compare this to a distinctive style, I would say the closest it comes to is the brilliant THE SEARCH FOR SIGNS OF INTELLIGENT LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE, written by Jane Wagner, and performed by Lily Tomlin (who steals this film, along with Dustin Hoffman). HUCKABEES truly examines what drives us in life, what is coincidence, what lies in our ultimate control in the world and how it shapes our personas in the world. I reccomend that you really take the time to see this film in one sitting, and you may even need to go back and watch it again to catch all of the nuance.

I heart huckabees.......2007-03-19

it arrived before it was supposed to so I was quite content

The best movie in the world.......2007-03-16

I think this movie is the best movie in the world, hands down. The cast is amazing, the script is impeccible, and the extra DVD isn't bad either. Theres hours of extras, some of its kind of boring, but its not bad if you love the movie.

Average customer rating:

I only buy great movies
A Must See!
Great Look at the Drug World
Jump Cuts Like A Knife
WOW

Spun (Unrated Version) [Region 99]
Starring: Jason Schwartzman , Mickey Rourke , Brittany Murphy , John Leguizamo , and Patrick Fugit
Director: Jonas Åkerlund
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Black Comedy | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( S ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Requiem for a Dream (Director's Cut)
The Salton Sea
Trainspotting - Director's Cut (Collector's Edition)
Kids
Bully

ASIN: B00005JM23
Release Date: 2003-07-22

Amazon.com

Spun is an unclassifiable ensemble piece, intentionally bleached of soulfulness and high on visual invention and comic depravity. Set in north Los Angeles, where meth freaks lurch from one motel room to another in search of companionship and a score, the film stars Jason Schwartzman as Ross, whose life is rapidly disintegrating. Fielding phone messages from his mother and trying in vain to reach an old girlfriend, Ross spends most of his time on a feverish circuit with the half-mad Cookie (Mena Suvari) and Nikki (Brittany Murphy), the dangerously paranoid Spider Mike (John Leguizamo), and a macho drugmaker called the Cook (Mickey Rourke). Director Jonas Akerlund's story is nonexistent, but then again Spun is driven by the blurry, hellish energy of a life lived on speed. An obvious influence is Darren Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream, but Akerlund is interested in nightmarish set pieces than tiny horrors of misfired nerve endings and ravaged time. --Tom Keogh

Description

When college drop-out Ross becomes the local crystal meth cook's personal driver in exchange for free drugs, he has no idea what he's in for. Starring: John Leguizamo (Moulin Rouge, Empire), Brittany Murphy (8 Mile, Just Married), Mena Suvari (American Beauty, American Pie),Jason Schwartzman (Slackers, Rushmore), Patrick Fugit (Almost Famous, White Oleander), Debbie Harry (lead singer of rock group "Blondie"), Mickey Rourke (The Pledge, Get Carter),Eric Roberts (National Security, TV's "Less Than Perfect").

Customer Reviews:

I only buy great movies.......2007-05-25

This movie is a comical view at the life of a meth user. I really love this movie. It's better than MTV's "True life - I'm a meth user."

A Must See!.......2007-05-13

This movie will definitely keep you entertained! A must see and a must add to your movie library collection.

Great Look at the Drug World.......2007-05-12

Very good depiction of the other side of the human dependency. If you like Natural Born Killers than you should enjoy this!!!!!!!!!

Jump Cuts Like A Knife.......2007-02-18

A lot of the criticism I've read about this movie has to do with the editing. To which I say: did all those jump cuts make you jumpy? Well, that's probably the point - to try and propel you the viewer into the confused and addled mindset of a fiending meth junkie. MY only problem is - once that point is made, the rest of the movie is kind of pointless (although, maybe the other point was to make a movie that's as much of a mess as the characters it represents. And while that wouldn't exactly be a propitious goal, at least it's a goal that they reached).

Granted, some of the skittish shots are beautifully composed - clearly it was a labor of (unrequited?) love to assemble so many artful shots only to run rampant with the jump cut Ginsu knife. And the opening title sequence is gorgeous. I could have watched it forever (which is both good and bad, since what I'm ultimately saying is this movie would have worked better as a music video).

It's a fine line (and one of the only ones that doesn't get snorted in the film), but sometimes a movie's style can get in the way of its substance. And, in the worst cases, sometimes its style serves to mask a lack of substance. This film suffers symptoms from both of these syndromes. I appreciate its aim, but for me the target was never quite hit.

The "comic" moments aren't that funny and the serious moments are undermined by the previous attempts at comedy. The acting is a bit forced and tone-deaf at times (Mena Suvari is surprisingly stilted and just can't seem to be convincingly hyperactive, but Brittany Murphy is actually really good).

The writing is subpar - there are no truly memorable lines that stuck in my mind (for which these kinds of movies are usually reliable). Plot? Not really. Guy drives around, leaves a girl in bed, tries to call his girlfriend. Which would be fine, if the movie was a slice of life or a character study, but this doesn't really feel like much of either.

Most of the celebrity cameos (Rob Halford of Judas Priest, Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins, Ron Jeremy of porn) are distracting and kind of useless (still, I can't bring myself to type anything mean about Debbie Harry, so I won't).

And by the time Mickey Rourke gets around to telling his "old dog" tale to a sleeping Jason Schwartzman, I'm practically comatose myself. So when the movie finally reaches its supposedly explosive climax, I'm numb. I'm spent. I'm spun. I'm done. Again, maybe that's the point. But it ain't no fun.

I'd like to give this movie 2.5 stars, but since I have to round up or down, I'll give it credit for being ambitious in what it's trying to do (as well as being so visually intoxicating) and round up to three.

WOW.......2007-02-14

Never seen anything quite like this movie. Absolutely loved how accurate and cleverly made with a style all its own.Pretty cool. One of my favs.

Average customer rating:

Where art tho dog?! I shall lick your snout ... (umm ... my favorite line in the movie)
RUN! FLEE!
Bewitched has been bestunk
Surprisingly Good!
What sixth grader dreamed up this plot?

Bewitched (Special Edition) [Region 99]
Starring: Nicole Kidman , Will Ferrell , Shirley MacLaine , Michael Caine , and Jason Schwartzman
Director: Nora Ephron
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Special Editions | Fully Loaded DVDs | Features | DVD | Video

Mr. & Mrs. Smith - Unrated (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Herbie - Fully Loaded
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Two-Disc Special Edition)
The Interpreter (Widescreen Edition)
Monster-in-Law (New Line Platinum Series)

ASIN: B000ASDFGI
Release Date: 2005-10-25

Product Description

Oscar®-winner Nicole Kidman (Best Actress in a leading role, The Hours, 2002) and wickedly funny Will Ferrell star as actors playing Darrin and Samantha on a remake of the television show "Bewitched" in this cleverly crafty comedy from director Nora Ephron (Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail). Egomaniacal star Jack Wyatt (Ferrell) casts unknown Isabel (Kidman) as his co-star in order to monopolize the limelight and regain his top spot on Hollywood's A-list. When Isabel, a real witch, discovers Jack's self-centered scheme, she conjures a sidesplitting spell the mere mortal will never forget!

System Requirements:
Running Time: 102 Min.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Amazon.com

As one of many in the ongoing trend of resurrecting old TV shows and turning them into contemporary Hollywood product, Bewitched tries awfully hard to distinguish itself. It succeeds in lots of surprising ways, not least of which is the star power brought by Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell. Even if they don't create the kind of romantic chemistry that would have elevated the already high concept, they act as delightful foils to each other, but more often to themselves. The conceit of this Bewitched is that it's a self-reflexive look at the entertainment business, with Ferrell playing Jack Wyatt, an actor starring in an updated version of the classic TV show. Out of favor with the Hollywood elite and desperately in need of a hit, he insists on an unknown to play Samantha, as he wants the show to be about him, since if something doesn't come his way soon, he's going to be hearing a lot of no's, despite the yes-men surrounding him. While his agent (Jason Schwartzman in hilarious high Hollywood sleaze mode) gets him the "unknown Samantha" deal, it's Jack himself who discovers his own leading lady in the delightful figure of Isabel Bigalow (Kidman), who possesses just the right nose wiggle, not to mention other wiggles.

But wouldn't you know it, Isabel really is a witch, and exactly the kind of "good" witch trying to rely less on her magical powers that Samantha Stevens was back in her "real" world. Instead of a cranky mother like Endora, Isabel has a distinguished father, Nigel (Michael Caine) who lurks around her as a constant reminder that she can't be who she's not (a mere mortal), and she certainly can't be the star of some zany TV show. As the plot thickens and the movie's reflexivity grows more convoluted, Nigel falls for the non-witch actress who plays Endora (Shirley MacLaine), and Jack and Isabel fall for each other. Here's where the Ferrell/Kidman gel doesn't quite become aspic, but her perkiness (I mean, come on, it is Nicole Kidman, for crying out loud) and his goofiness (Ferrell is at his peak of intelligent bumbling) are more than enough to make the entirety of the proceedings a delectable trifle. Director Nora Ephron has fun skewering her own business in the script she co-wrote with her sister Delia, and her eye for quality craft makes everything sparkle as it should. Even if we have yet to see the definitive remake of an old TV show on the big screen, at least Bewitched is well more than run-of-the-mill as so many adaptations have been, and so many will be. --Ted Fry

Customer Reviews:

Where art tho dog?! I shall lick your snout ... (umm ... my favorite line in the movie).......2007-06-18

I've seen this film so many times and finally made the plunge and purchased it and absolutely love it! While it does contain a major cheese factor (a movie about making a TV re-make of Bewitched ... c'mon), it's so incredibly cute and funny! Are Nicole & Will a slightly odd pairing? Maybe so, but I think that's the sheer brilliance of it. The characters are delightful and they deliver a whole lot of laughs -- whats not to love about it?!

RUN! FLEE!.......2007-06-16

There are not enough expletives in the English language to describe just how awful this circular piece of trash is. Use it as a small frisbee. You will get more enjoyment out of it.

Inspired by the popular television, "Bewitched" sports some big names, and completely squanders their talent, (which is not insignificant). The fact that people like Nicole Kidman, Will Ferrell, Michael Caine and Shirley MacLaine could not lift this foul stench of a movie above the cesspit of mediocrity should sound warning bells to all and sundry.

This movie succeeded in putting me off anything with Will Ferrell in it for a very long time, (I am still in therapy and dealing with deep emotional scarring). Only now have I started to give his movies a chance, and enjoy them.

Basically, avoid this movie. Find a blackboard and run your fingernails down it. You will enjoy yourself a whole lot more.

Bewitched has been bestunk.......2007-06-08

will ferell is pretty funny in this movie, but the whole idea was stupid, they shoul've made a movie based on the show not the way they did it. I agree that it's a new take but in my oppinion it didn't fly very well. and they made nicole kidmans character to stupid. well thats all.

Surprisingly Good!.......2007-06-07

I'm not a big fan of either Will Farrell or Nicole Kidman, but I love this movie! It's a really clever twist on the series Bewitched, paying a nice homage without trying to recreate it. Farrell and Kidman have a fairly good on-screen chemistry (no sizzle, but not bad) but they play off each other really well. Michael Caine and Shirley McClain are great (what else could they be) and the other minor characters are original and hysterical.

My only slight downside - Kidman's Isabel looks amazing similar to Meg Ryan's Kathleen Kelley in You've Got Mail (I think the score is actually the same at times!). Not surprising, since Nora Ephron directed both, and they are both charming in both roles.

Nice, light, clever, feel good movie!

What sixth grader dreamed up this plot?.......2007-06-03

I don't want to insult sixth graders, but this movie was strictly grade school stuff. Not only did it not pay homage to the TV series, it seemed like an insult to it. Characters were not funny or likable. This film was boring and predictable. I gave it 2 stars because I made it through the whole thing although I'm not sure how.

Average customer rating:

NOT MUCH TO CARE ABOUT
Excellent Relationship Film
Classy, Essentric, Lovely.
I wasn't impressed
SHOPDULL

Shopgirl
Starring: Steve Martin , Claire Danes , Jason Schwartzman , Bridgette Wilson , and Sam Bottoms
Director: Anand Tucker
Manufacturer: Buena Vista Home Entertainment / Touchstone
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( S ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Match Point
The Family Stone (Widescreen Edition)
Rumor Has It... (Widescreen Edition)
Munich (Widescreen Edition)
Failure to Launch (Special Collector's Edition)

ASIN: B000EDWKX8
Release Date: 2006-04-25

Amazon.com

Any fan of Steve Martin's 2000 novella will enjoy this pitch-perfect adaptation, which glowingly captures the bittersweet tones of a May-December romance. Martin wrote the screenplay and stars as Ray Porter, a button-down 50-something executive who reaches out to a much younger woman as a Los Angeles playmate. The book and movie, though, are both primarily about Mirabelle (Claire Danes), a 20-something with a pile of promises, debt, and depression, as she fades away into a slow corner of Saks selling unneeded formal gloves. She's a wisp of a person, with a cat who doesn't love her, and when she finds a suitor, it's Jeremy (Jason Schwartzman), a scruffy artist who babbles on about speakers. When the gentlemanly Porter calls, his appearance in her life begins to make her whole. It also immediately sets her up for sadness--Ray thinks of Mirabella as a precious outlet for sex, while Mirabelle, very mistakenly, sees Ray as a potential lifelong mate. Martin deftly turns the novella's prose into dialogue, allowing the movie to feel full-bodied, and the film also works as a comedy, as we witness Jeremy's growth on the road with a rock band. Schwartzman would walk away with film if not for the perfectly cast leads: Martin does another smart turn away from his wild-and-crazy moniker, Danes has never been better in an Oscar-worthy performance, and Bridgette Wilson-Sampras aces her role as a hot-to-trot co-worker of Mirabelle's. Whoever's decision to have Martin be the omnipresent narrator, though, should be penalized, as it's confusing to have him in two roles, and the information is pretty useless, even robbing the film of a final grace note. --Doug Thomas

Description

Based on Steve Martin's best-selling novella, and starring Golden Globe(R) winner Claire Danes (Best Actress In A TV Series, MY SO-CALLED LIFE, 1994), Golden Globe(R) nominee Steve Martin (Best Actor In A Motion Picture -- Comedy/Musical, FATHER OF THE BRIDE PART II, 1995), and Jason Schwartzman (BEWITCHED), SHOPGIRL is a disarmingly funny love story. Mirabelle, brilliantly played by Danes, is an aspiring artist working behind the glove counter at a Beverly Hills department store when she meets two very different men -- Jeremy (Schwartzman), a socially inept guy who doesn't seem to be going anywhere, and Ray (Martin) a wealthy entrepreneur who has the world at his feet. Filled with the mixed signals and missteps of a modern romance, SHOPGIRL is a fresh and witty, warm, and funny romantic comedy you can't help but fall in love with.

Customer Reviews:

NOT MUCH TO CARE ABOUT.......2007-06-23

SHOPGIRL is a painful movie to watch because you don't really like either of the two male leads and you hate seeing Mirabelle, the shopgirl of the title played by Claire Danes, get emotionally hurt. And Mirabelle herself has no life so you are not much rooting for her either. As a result, the viewer is left emotionally flat, wincing at Mirabelle's misfortune. Steve Martin wrote the screenplay as well as the 2000 novel on which the movie is based. He also plays Ray Porter, a mysteriously rich businessman with no apparent family or friends other than one ex-girlfriend. Ray quietly seduces Mirabelle and showers her with gifts but not love. Meanwhile, Jeremy, an immature clown played by Jason Schwartzman, is also competing for her affections. Both Ray and Jeremy are emotionally stunted men incapable of love who only hurt Mirabelle or leave her empty. But then you have to wonder what such a gorgeous young woman is doing with these two losers. It doesn't make sense. Mirabelle could have any number of attractive, successful men who would be more than willing to love her. Instead, she is alone, without even a cat. The script implies that there is nothing wrong with Mirabelle, only with the her two suitors, Ray and Jeremy. One is tempted to read into this another Hollywood indictment of men. When are men going to get tired of going on movie dates only to find their gender being libeled again and again on the screen? Makes for wonderful after-date conversation how big of jerks the men were in the film, doesn't it? I would pass this film. SHOPGIRL, like Mirabelle, is rather boring. Perhaps that is her problem with men after all.

Excellent Relationship Film.......2007-06-16

Clair Danes gives a credible performance as an honest, sweet natured, twenty-something artist from Vermont who ventures out to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of being a featured photographer. She lives alone in a modest apartment working and biding her time at Saks Fifth Ave as a counter salesperson in the women's glove department. Clair's isolation (she does have some female friends, co-workers at Saks), becomes apparant when she gives her phone number to an off-beat stencil artist (Jason Schwartzman) she meets in a laundry mat. After a first date that can only be described as wierd, Clair accepts an invitation to dinner from an older man played by Steve Martin whom she meets while working at Saks. The first exchange between the 2 characters is extremely well written and plausible. Martin's clever move of sending Marabelle the gloves that she thought she sold him shows that male romantic ingenuity is alive and well. As Marabelle's and Martin's relationship becomes more involved the outer shell of each character becomes unraveled. The subtle use of voice-overs fills in the emotions that torment Martin's character. The scenes of Marabelle burning the dinner invitation card, returning to her teen room in Vermont, and photgraphing herself are especially moving. The one scene that is very powerful, yet a bit confusing to me was when Martin calls Clair at her parent's Vermont home. On a rotary wall phone (brilliant)Clair ponders whether to join Martin in New York for a reconciliation. The camera cuts to Clair's mom, then back to Clair. Is it that Clair so desperately wants to avoid the simple Vermont marriage that has defined her mother ? The dialogue in the script is wonderfully paced and written. The Jeremy character would probably have made Johnny Depp jump through hoops to get the part. Schwartzman almost steals the picture. But Martin and Danes give what I feel are their best perfomrances ever on the silver screen.

Classy, Essentric, Lovely........2007-06-15

I am so mesmerized with Shop Girl;I have watched it several times. I fall completely in love with Claire Danes' character who is clearly the luminary in this movie. Claire takes Mirabelle Buttersfield on her journey as shop girl, lover, and friend. Eventually Mirabelle even manages to find the truth to truth to her heart and herself.

I really appreciate the costume designer's taste in dressing the characters of this movie. She manages to give Mirabelle a classy, eccentric, lovely feel. (Where does she shop, I wonder?)

This movie may not be for everyone, but it's definitely for me. I wouldn't hesitate to give it a chance.

I wasn't impressed.......2007-05-27

With Steve Martin and Claire Danes, I definitely expected more out of this movie. I found myself bored throughout the movie, and if I wasn't doing laundry while I was watching, I don't think I would have watched the entire thing.

SHOPDULL.......2007-04-29

Steve Martin's eponymous book was a breeze of a read, a punchy little novella as it billed itself. The movie, I'm afraid, is consummately devoid of that edge. Similar themes have been explored in effortless narratives such as Lost in Translation, As Good As It Gets, Ghost World, or Wonder Boys, which encapsulate their worlds in such exquisite cadence that the viewer feels immersed in the dynamics of their romances. Shopgirl the movie only scrambles to achieve that depth.

The first thirty minutes are painful if not ignorable, as the loneliness of our lead girl from the glove department--so beautifully evoked in the novel's text--gets a short shrift in favor of some irritating antics of a loser badly in need of a haircut and some pocket change. Jason Schwartzman is one annoying weirdo. Was that comedy? Perhaps. For adolescent viewers with pierced tongues.

When Steve Martin enters to save the film, he succeeds in making it halfway endurable. But this quickly falls by the wayside as the film careens into syrupy older-man-meets-younger-woman scenes of self-absorption, very few of which ever really resonate with sensibility. He's a successful businessman with commitment issues. Yawn. Tears and other waterworks follow.

As though the padding of voice-overs that hit the most obvious points on our heads lest we should miss the film's, um, subtleties, were not enough, the soundtrack is oppressively redundant, straddling between synthesizer slash piano when least necessary, and 70s soft rock when something calmer would have sufficed.

Claire Dane's is probably the only real salvo in the film, hence the 3 stars. Her world-weary depiction of anomie and low expectations is one of most pensive, open performances I have seen from her (not that she has an exceptional repertoire against which to compare). Sadly, she cannot alone redeem a film that lacks the impressive gravity of the book upon which it is based. Screenplays matter more than we give them credit for. This one reeks of labored pablum.

Average customer rating:

Get Them In Your Crosshairs And Take Them Down...
One of the most original and entertaining comedies of the '90s...
You either love it or hate it.
Not really my cup of tea....*Spoilers*
Great flick for nerds

Rushmore - Criterion Collection
Starring: Jason Schwartzman , Bill Murray , Olivia Williams , Seymour Cassel , and Brian Cox
Director: Wes Anderson
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Comedy | Criterion Collection | Stores | DVD | Video

All | Criterion Collection | Stores | DVD | Video

( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

The Royal Tenenbaums (The Criterion Collection)
Bottle Rocket
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - Criterion Collection (2-Disc Special Edition)
I Heart Huckabees
Lost in Translation

ASIN: B00003Q42P
Release Date: 2000-01-18

Amazon.com essential video

Description

Wes Anderson's dazzling sophomore effort is equal parts coming-of-age story, French New Wave homage, and screwball comedy. Tenth grader Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) is Rushmore Academy's most extracurricular student-and its least scholarly. He faces expulsion, and enters into unlikely friendships with both a lovely first-grade teacher (Olivia Williams) and a melancholy self-made millionaire (Bill Murray, in an award-winning performance). Set to a soundtrack of classic British Invasion tunes, Rushmore defies categorization even as it captures the pain and exuberance of adolescence with wit, emotional depth, and cinematic panache. Criterion is proud to present one of 1998's most acclaimed films in a Director Approved special edition.

Customer Reviews:

Get Them In Your Crosshairs And Take Them Down..........2007-06-24

One of the most original and entertaining comedies of the '90s..........2007-05-23

You either love it or hate it........2007-05-12

Not really my cup of tea....*Spoilers*.......2007-03-20

Great flick for nerds.......2007-03-11

Average customer rating:

There's No Photo Finish for this HD DVD movie, it wents by a long amound of distance!!!!
"The perfect horse to take him there" (BEST HD-DVD MOVIE I HAVE!!!!!)
Awsome !!!
Top notch HD-DVD !!
Beautiful HD Quality

Seabiscuit [HD DVD]
Starring: Royce D. Applegate , Jeff Bridges , George Baker , Samuel Bottoms , and Chris Cooper
Director: Gary Ross
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: HD DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Skiing & Snow Sports | Sports | Genres | DVD | Video

General | HD DVD | Formats | DVD | Video

Drama | HD DVD | Formats | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Batman Begins [HD DVD]
King Kong (HD-DVD)
Casablanca [HD DVD]
Ray
Sahara [HD DVD]

ASIN: B000GFLEAY
Release Date: 2006-09-12

Customer Reviews:

There's No Photo Finish for this HD DVD movie, it wents by a long amound of distance!!!!.......2007-05-15

Simply the best HD DVD movie out there! That's it! Its a great horse movie! King Kong was great on HD DVD, but this overwelming takes over the HD realm of Demos. If you want to show people how HD looks and feels, this is the Movie! I was so eager to see what this HD movie was going to be! I own about 12 HD DVD, and i love 'em all, but this Seabiscuit is by far the Best HD movie! Hands down! (not to say its the best movie out my collection, but in picture, this movie Blows them out of the tracks.) A great story about a Trainer, Jockey and Owner and the Horse that brought them together to conquer thier obstacles called Life. This is the one you HAVE TO get for HD! I am overwelm with joy with this purchase! Add it to your Collections and Show OFF the HD!!!!!

"The perfect horse to take him there" (BEST HD-DVD MOVIE I HAVE!!!!!).......2007-03-06

This HD-DVD movie is AWESOME in so many ways. The movie just pop's out at you in HD, the colors are so rich and Gary Ross did a wonderful job on directing this film. I think Gary Ross put every he had in this movie, I really like how he started the movie off in a documentary kind of way; with the narrator David McCullough and all history is really what made the movie come together. The acting was phenomenal, with Toby Maguire(Red Pollard), Jeff Bridges(Charles Howard), Chris Cooper(Tom Smith), Elizabeth Banks(Marcela Howard), and the great William H. Macy(Tick Tock McGlaughlin). I think this is one of Jeff Bridges best performances in along time, the same goes for Chris Copper I love when his character(Tom Smith) said "You don't throw a whole life away because its banged up a little bit". William H. Macy was hilarious as Tick Tock McGlaughlin and Toby Maguire was just born to play as Red Pollard in every way. I was really overwhelmed by Gary Stevens(George Woolf)performance which is not any actor, but was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1997 at the age of 34.
Every time I see this movie it just puts tears to my eyes, such an uplifting movie in every way! The movie should have got a lot of Oscars, but The Lord of the Rings- Return of the King- killed everything that year (which it really did deserved every Oscar it got). A must have for every HD-DVD collector!!! I don't think their will every be another horse movie that can be done like this again period!

Awsome !!!.......2007-02-20

The movie is great from start to finish , the story , the actors Toby Maguire, Jeff Bridges ,Chris Cooper etc.did a great job.

This has to be HD at it's best. True eye popping eye candy.
I recomend this movie to anyone. Truely a reference HD dvd.

Top notch HD-DVD !!.......2007-01-09

Sound and picture quality on this HD-DVD are mind blowing !!!
Highly recommended to everyone !

Beautiful HD Quality.......2006-12-27

Seabiscuit on HD-DVD is a stunning visual treat.

Numerous visual scenes are unforgettable:

* Jeff Bridges at the end of the road race is standing high in the mountains and states that 'the future is the destiniation' - the scenery in the background is breathtaking.

* Toby Maguire and Seabiscuit take a ride in the autumn countryside - the visual of the bridge and the countryside is amazing and worth the price alone.

* Numerous race scenes in the movie are captivating with the vivid colors.

The audio track was exceptional and the hoofs of the horses rocked our home Theater.

Highly recommend this excellent movie in HD; a cinematic pleasure!

Average customer rating:

Don't listen to the naysayers
It's just 'American Pie' done horribly wrong!
What's most tragic about this film . . . .
You're smart. I like you. I'll probably give you a nickname.
Watch it with your hair-doll =)

Slackers [Region 99]
Starring: Devon Sawa , Jason Segel , Michael C. Maronna , Jason Schwartzman , and Jaime King
Director: Dewey Nicks
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B0000648X1
Release Date: 2002-05-28

Amazon.com

Dewon Sawa is the impish leader of a trio of higher-education shysters who are blackmailed by deranged nerd Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore) into playing cupid in this latest twist on the college prank comedy. It starts playfully enough and winds through some clever test-taking shell games and commando-style operations to cheat the system, but soon enough falls into a familiar formula of teen sex, outrageous pranks, and gross-out gags. If that's your bag, this film rings the bell with a mind-boggling scene involving Schwartzman, '60s sex bomb Mamie Van Doren, and a sponge bath. Sawa's crooked smile is loaded for charm, James King is adorable as the angelic beauty, and Schwartzman is perhaps too convincing as a stalker with a raging psychosis, but this has nothing on Animal House, the original college rebel film of sex, scams, and the celebration of bad taste. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews:

Don't listen to the naysayers.......2007-03-16

This movie is hilarious! gross silly humor, but my favorite of all Jason Schwartzman films- even better than Rushmore!

It's just 'American Pie' done horribly wrong!.......2006-12-22

`Slackers' is about as tasteless as `American Pie' but only has half the laughs, thus deeming it somewhat of a worthless time-waster. If you want to see a bunch of off color jokes made with no real fun factor then this is the film to watch. If you want a smart sex-comedy that will make you laugh while still delivering the goods then this is the film to avoid. Devon Sawa is your star here, the bad boy who learns a valuable lesson about scamming on the hot chick. That hot chick is Jaime (James) King, who plays Angela, the girl of nerdy stalker boy Ethan's (Jason Schwartzman) dreams. Ethan bribes Dave (Sawa) and his two friends Sam (Jason Segel) and Jeff (Michael C. Maronna of `The Adventures of Pete and Pete' fame) to play match maker between him and Angela, but Angela ends up falling for Dave and then the truth is spilled and hearts are broken, but we all know how it ends because we've all seen this done a million times before, except it's been done better, smarter and much funnier! I will say it was worth watching to see Laura Prepon from `That 70's Show' get her grove on...

What's most tragic about this film . . . . .......2006-11-12

. . . . . is that it's actually being discussed. I'm pretty down about the fact that I have so few ways in which to usefully spend my time that I am offering an opinion on this excrement. Exploitation of aging film stars is nothing new and if they are willing to be exploited then who am I to complain?; there's nothing objectionable about seeing a naked body on the screen, in my opinion; we all do stupid and regrettable things in our youth and they are, potentially, funny. However, certain crimes against the viewing public are inexcusable, namely the fact that WE HAVE SEEN IT ALL BEFORE, SO MANY TIMES. I, personally, feel insulted that we are being offered this crud but am also aware of a sense of doom that people are actually getting laughs from the tired, old, flogged cliches (you know, sock over turgid member, lustful older woman, kooky student, BOY WHO REALISES THE ERROR OF HIS WAYS etc., etc., etc). As a final tirade and the most astounding feature of all the reviews that have appeared before is that some so beguiled by their own "insights" that they are reviewing this film in a pseudo-academic manner. I was sure the word "ouvre" (if that's how it's spelt) would appear somewhere. Please, someone, tell me that nobody has yet written a PhD thesis on campus comedy, that most banal of film types. Please!!! Otherwise, truthfully, any pretension that we are an intelligent species may as well be buried once and for all.
Yes, this is a truly terrible film in every sense of the word. It is a "comedy" that is genuinely depressing but we're getting pretty used to being fed swill now, am I right? And some are becoming quite fond of the taste . . .

You're smart. I like you. I'll probably give you a nickname........2006-08-11

If a stranger were to walk up to me and with a straight face ask me if Slackers is worth the rental ... I would pause, consider the options, and finally say, boldly, "yes". For me, Slackers wasn't a poor film, but it wasn't, by far, the greatest comedy ever written. I am basing this fact on the "laugh" factor. For a reason that I cannot explain, I found myself mildly entertained by this film. I don't know if it was the constantly changing tone of the film, or the fact that Schwartzman pulled the comedy off with the greatest of skills, but this meager film critic found some value in this little off-beat comedy. I will have to whole-heartedly agree with other critics that Slackers was cliché, random, and at times, very very dull, but overall it seemed to fit. I have found quite a bit of articles comparing this film to the infamous American Pie movie, but to me, it seemed more like a less-nudity, less-bodily gas humor version of Animal House. The intelligence skirted around this film, at times entering in it providing one or two great moments, but overall it couldn't counter the random blandness that seemed to further creep in, surpassing the greatness.

I think we should begin with the good of this film, because again, it is what stood out greater in the scheme of it all. Jason Schwartzman. Bar none he carried this film. From his random songs, the great scenes in which he "volunteers" with Angela, and his well-celebrated hair doll, Schwartzman was funny. In fact, as you watch this film, one could say that in each scene Jason is honored to be in, he dominates them. His lines are not just perfect, but his mannerisms seem to also accentuate his character very well. Schwartzman is worth the price of the rental alone. Outside of me just drooling on Jason's character "Cool Ethan", I thought that the sporadic (and need I say random) way that this film was actually filmed, with the "Magic Number" relapse, the true way to help Ethan find a girl, and the singing sock - of which that is all I believe I can say. These enjoyable interjections made Slackers a bit more unique. I wasn't expecting this level of satire for such a small film. It felt like director Dewey Nicks did his comedy homework. He knew how to make some people laugh. Now, I am not saying that he graduated from Comedy College, but he did finish his homework early as well as do the extra credit.

Jason Schwartzman was phenomenal in this film, but those that accompanied him deserve some respect as well. While I think that Devon Sawa was struggling in this film (see next paragraph), his co-conspirators held their own. Jason Segel reminded me of a young Ken Marino, just not as funny) and Michael C. Maronna had a funny bit or two. Laura Prepon, of That 70s Show fame, added some flair to the duller moments, but seemed more like eye-candy than any sort of actual actor value. The hair doll was an odd, yet fun element. I don't want to drool over Schwartzman in this entire review, but it was entire do to him that this film did not fail in my eyes. He was short, spastic, and completely unappreciated by other critics. This was one of those small films that allowed Schwartzman to fully grow and demonstrate his humorous ability. I could go on for some time, but I have to discuss the ultimate pitfalls of this film.

Slackers was funny, but it wasn't great. I don't think I could bear to watch a second time. While I previously drooled over the amazing comic ability of Schwartzman, he could not match the downfalls of this film. There was not visible plot. There was a very cliché storyline that could be viewed in nearly every other film of this genre, but nothing that immediately sto